1. Background Art
Airless and other paint sprayers have been widely used for commercial and other painting purposes for many years. One of the least liked aspects of such units however is the need for cleaning at the end of a day or job. Typically, such cleaning consists of immersing the intake tube of the unit in a bucket of water or other solvent and flushing into a bucket until the fluid coming out of the gun is clean and clear. The amount required can often be many gallons. Removal of the filter in the system is also necessary to remove debris trapped on the inlet side of the filter.
2. Disclosure of the Invention
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an enhanced method of flushing and airless sprayer which is easily accomplished with minimal operator input and which flushes more thoroughly than traditional methods while using less fluid.
Fluid from the pump outlet is rerouted away from the manifold filter and into the front of the spray gun enabling cleaning fluid to be pumped in reverse through the gun, the hose, the filter manifold and out the drain valve into a waste bucket to collect the flushed material. The reverse flow clears the debris caught in the filters during spraying.
In an alternate embodiment, for flushing the tip of the airless spray gun is removed, the trigger opened and the gun placed in a container of water or other suitable solvent depending on the material to be flushed. A dump valve control is then operated which connects the gun line to the pump intake and the pump output is connected to the return line which is in turn connected to the suction tube placed in a container to collect the flushed material. The pump is then operated and generates reverse flow in the system: (1) until the operator sees the output to be clean; or (2) for a predetermined period of time while the operator does other things; or (3) until an opacity detector finds the output to be clear; or (4) until a pressure sensor sees a pressure drop reflecting exhaustion of the cleaning fluid.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more fully from the following description made in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like reference characters refer to the same or similar parts throughout the several views.